Holder and dispenser



Dec. 31, 1957 o. BRAY 2,81 1

HOLDER AND DISPENSER Filed Nov. 13,195; 2 Shets-Sheet 1 67 570.297 .2. 3/ 3/ name I 5 INVENTOR ozrefianfiray mfg/760% Z2 za /7 Z/ x4 Z5 ATTORNEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 Dec. 31, 1957 Filed Nov. l3, 1953 0 6 RXUJ H I I M MN W W. 5 M 2 m a 5 w r A 8 m i 0 w e k /9 6 4 United States Patent HOLDER AND DISPENSER Overton Bray, Paul, Idaho Application November 13, 1953, Serial No. 391,783

2 Claims. (Cl. 312-42) This invention relates to a novel holder and dispenser primarily intended for use in retail stores or the like for holding packages of cigarettes to be dispensed and which is likewise well adapted for holding numerous other articles of merchandise.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a holder of extremely simple construction including adjustably mounted parts which cooperate in a unique manner with one another and with permanent parts of the holder for holding articles of different sizes such as the regular'size and king size packages of cigarettes, and whereby through adjustment of the adjustable parts various numbers of rows of packages of cigarettes of different sizes may be accommodated.

A further object of the invention is to provide a holder which due to its unique construction may be very quickly and easily refilled and from whichthe articles contained in the individual rows may be selectively removed with a minimum of efiort.

A further object of the invention is to provide a holder having means to protect the contents thereof from unauthorized removal and by means of which merchandise of the type being dispensed may be additionally presented as advertising displays.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

Figure l is a fragmentary top plan view of the holder and dispenser;

Figure 2 is an enlarged cross sectional view thereof taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view,

taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a top plan view of one of the removable and adjustably mounted inserts;

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view thereof taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 55 F of Figure 4, and

Figure 6 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 6-6 of Figure 2.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the novel holder and dispenser in its entirety and comprising the invention is designated generally 8 and includes a supporting structure, designated generally 9, having a bot: tom 10, upstanding side walls 11, a front wall 12 and an inclined front and top wall 13. The walls 11, 12 and 13 are connected to one another and to the bottom by internally disposed cleats including inclined rearcleats 14 on the upper edges of which the top wall 13 rests. The rear of the structure 9 is closed by a top wall section 16, a closure section 17 which is disposed therebeneath, a bottom cleat' 18 and vertical side cleats 19. The closure section 17 comprises a transparent panel of glass or the like as seen at 20 mounted in a frame 21 2,818,319 Patented Dec. 31, 1957 2 which is hinged along one vertical edge thereof by hinges 22 to one side wall 11 and cleat 19 and which is normally retained in a closed position by a spring latch 23 which is secured to the other side wall 11 and which releasably engages a keeper 24 fixed to the other vertical edge of the frame 21.

The front wall 12 extends upwardly only a slight distance from the bottom 10. The lower end of the sloping front and top wall 13 rests on and is secured to the inclined upper end of the front wall 12 and extends upwardly and rearwardly therefrom and has its upper edge disposed adjacent the rear wall section 16 and substantially beneath the upper edge thereof, as best seen in Figure 2. The side walls 11 have upper portions 25 which extend to substantially above the inclined top and front wall 13 and which have outer edges 26 disposed substantially parallel to said wall 13. The wall portions 25 likewise extend outwardly from the lower portion of the wall 13 and said outer portions have abutment members 27 secured to the inner sides thereof.

Normally, and as illustrated by the drawings, the holder and dispenser 8 is relatively long so that the walls 11 constitute end walls thereof. A plurality of inserts 28 of channel shaped cross section are detachably and adjustably mounted on the upper side of the sloping wall 13 and each extends from top to bottom thereof. Each insert 28 includes a bottom 29 which rests on the sloping wall 13 and upstanding or outwardly extending substantially parallel side walls 30. The bottom 29 has an outturned flange 31 at its upper end which bears against a portion of the upper edge of the sloping wall 13 and which is preferably provided with one or more depending prongs 32 which extend into the upper edge of the sloping wall 13 to releasably secure the upper end of the insert 28 thereto. A screw fastening 33 extends through and is countersunk in an opening 34, located adjacent the lower end of the bottom 29. Said screw fastening 33 is anchored in the sloping wall 13 to secure the lower end of the adjustable insert 28, to a lower portion of the wall 13. As seen in Figure 2, the upper ends of the side walls extend upwardly adjacent the upper portion of the rear wall section 16. Likewise, the lower ends of the side walls 30, extend downwardly and outwardly from the lower end of the bottom 29.

Dual abutment members 35 are slotted as seen at 36 in Figure 5 to receive said lower ends of the side walls 30, to which said abutment members are secured by a screw fastening 37 and portions 38 of the abutment members 35 located on either side of the walls 30 each correspond to the abutment members 27 and each includes an inner portion 39 having an upper end forming an inner shoulder 40, an intermediate portion 41 disposed outwardly and below the portion 39 and having an inner end forming an intermediate shoulder 42, and an outer portion 43 disposed outwardly of and below the intermediate portion 41 and having an inner end forming an outer shoulder 44. Said shoulders 40, 42 and 44 are disposed in outwardly stepped relationship to one another and are each of a width, measured outwardly from the bottom 29 of the inserts 28, equal in thickness to the thickness of an article to be engaged by the shoulder.

From the foregoing it will be readily apparent that any desired number of the removable inserts 28 may be adjustably applied to the upper side of the inclined wall 13, as previously described, depending upon the length of said wall 13. The space between the walls 30 of each insert 28 is preferably of a width to accommodate a specific article of merchandise such as a standard size pack of cigarettes. Likewise, the different inserts 28 may be spaced relatively to one another for accommodating between the adjacent walls thereof either standard size or king size packages of cigarettes, which latter articles are supported directly against the upper surface of the sloping wall 13. Likewise, the side wall portions will cooperate with a Wall of an adjacent insert 28 for accommodating cigarette packages or similar articles in the same manner and the width of this space like the width of the spaces afforded between adjacent walls 30 of different inserts 28 may obviously be varied. Obviously, the inserts 28 will have to be applied beginning with reference to one of the wall portions 25 and the space between the other wall portion 25 and the insert wall 30 located adjacent thereto will not necessarily be of a proper size to accommodate either size package of cigarettes but if smaller may be utilized for accommodating boxes or packages of matches.

In the spaces provided between adjacent Walls 30 or walls 30 and wall portions 25, packages of cigarettes are stacked in inclined rows as illustrated in Figure 2 with the ends of the packages abutting said walls so that the packages extend transversely of the spaces thus formed. The lower row of cigarette packages rest either on an insert bottom 29 or in the sloping surface 13 and the bottommost pack-age thereof bears against and is supported by the outstanding abutment shoulder 40. The second row of cigarette packages is disposed on the first row and on the abutment portions 39, as seen in Figure 2, and the bottom package thereof rests against the intermediate abutment shoulder 42. The outer row of cigarette packages 45 is disposed on the intermediate row and the lower package partially rests against the abutment portion 41 and is supported against the outer abutment shoulder 44. It will thus be readily apparent that the rows of packages 45 are supported with the individual packages of the different rows in staggered relationship, as illustrated in Figure 2. It will also be apparent that the fingers can be inserted between the adjacent abutment members 38 or 38 and 27 to engage the bottornrnost package 45 of the outer row and k which may be readily lifted from the holder and dispenser to thus provide a convenient and simple means for removing a package of a selected brand. The other packages of the outer row will slide downwardly so that another package will be disposed against the shoulders 44 ready to be next removed. After removal of all of the packages of the outer row, the packages of the intermediate row may be similarly removed. The packages of the bottom row are less conveniently removed and are primarily intended for advertising the different brands of cigarettes and are not ordinarily removed as the two rows are capable of supporting more than a complete carton of cigarettes. Consequently, when only two or three packages of cigarettes are left in the intermediate row a new carton may be emptied into the space for quickly and easily refilling the intermediate and outer rows without individually applying the packages from the carton. Obviously, the bottom row of cigarettes will be available as a reserve if needed and the packages thereof may be rearranged to refill the bottom portions of the intermediate and outer rows. Obviously, other articles sold in retail stores may be held and dispensed from the structure 8 in addition to cigarette packages 45, such as bars of soap and boxes and packages of other merchandise.

The holder and dispenser 8 may be mounted on a counter with the rear part thereof facing outwardly and in which case the enclosed space 46 may be used for the storage of the merchandise subsequently to be dispensed and advertising material to advertise the products contained in the dispenser may be arranged Within the space 46 to be seen through the window or pane 20. When thus utilized, the front of the dispenser is preferably provided with a cover 47 including a large transparent panel or window 43 contained in a frame 49 having side portions which rest upon the edges 26 of the Wall portions 25 and a top frame portion 50 disposed at an angle to the remainder of the cover 47 and which rest on horizontal top portions of the walls 25. The frame portion 50 is connected by hinges 51 to the rear wall'section 16 so that the cover 48 may be swung upwardly for refilling the package receiving spaces. Spring latch members 52 extend downwardly from the side edges of the frame 49 and engage stationary keepers 53 on the outer surfaces of the wall portions 25 for latching the cover 47 in its closed position of Figures 2 and 3. The bottom edge of the cover 47 is disposed sufliciently above the abutments 27 and 38, as illustrated in Figure 2, so that the packages 45 can be removed in the same manner as previously described.

Where the holder and dispenser 8 is mounted on a shelf behind a counter and in a position inaccessible to customers, the cover 47 may be omitted as well :as the rear closure 17.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and obviously may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A holder and dispenser comprising a supporting structure including an inclined wall having an upper edge and a lower edge, a pair of inserts mounted on the upper surface of said inclined wall, each of said inserts being of channel shaped construction and including a substantially fiat bottom disposed against and secured to the upper side of the inclined wall and extending from top to bottom thereof and a pair of side walls extending upwardly from said bottom and disposed in planes perpendicular to the planes of the inclined wall and insert bottom, said side walls having complementary lower ends extending beyond the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, abutment means secured to the lower end of each side wall and extending outwardly from the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, said abutment means of each side wall including an abutment member mounted on each side of the side wall thereof, each abutment member having stepped shoulders disposed perpendicular to the planes of the inclined wall and the insert bottom and spaced different distances therefrom, at least certain of said stepped shoulders being disposed beyond and in overhanging relation to the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, the abutment members located between the side walls in each insert being adapted to cooperate with one another to provide stops for the lowermost articles of a plurality of superimposed rows of articles of merchandise supported in said insert and confined between the side walls of each insert being adapted to being spaced a substantial distance apart whereby a portion of the undersides of the lowermost articles of a plurality of said superimposed rows of articles are disposed in exposed positions between said abutment members and outwardly with respect to the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, the adjacently disposed side walls of the two inserts being spaced apart a distance to cooperate with a portion of said inclined wall located therebetween to provide an intermediate channel shaped portion adapted to accommodate a plurality of superimposed rows of additional articles of merchandise, and the abutment members located between said last mentioned adjacently disposed side walls providing stops for the lowermost articles of said additional rows of articles.

2. A holder and dispenser comprising a supporting structure including an inclined wall having an upper edge and a lower edge, a pair of inserts mounted on the upper surface of said inclined wall, each of said inserts being of channel shaped construction and including a substantially fiat bottom disposed against and secured to the upper side of said inclined wall and extending from top to bottom thereof and a pair of side walls extending upwardly from said bottom and disposed in planes perpendicular to the planes of the inclined wall and insert bottom, said side walls having complementary lower ends extending beyond the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, abutment means secured ,to the lower end of each side wall and extending outwardly from the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, said abutment means of each side wall including an abutment member mounted on each side of the side wall thereof, each abutment member having stepped shoulders disposed perpendicular to the planes of the inclined wall and the insert bottom and spaced different distances therefrom, at least certain of said stepped shoulders'being beyond and in overhanging relation to the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, the abutment members located between the side walls of each insert being adapted to cooperate with one another to provide stops for the lowermost articles of a plurality of superimposed rows of articles of merchandise supported in said insert and confined between the side walls thereof, said abutment members being spaced a substantial distance apart whereby a portion of the undersides of the lowermost articles of a plurality of said superimposed rows of articles are disposed in exposed positions between said abutment members and outwardly with respect to the lower end of the insert bottom and the lower edge of said inclined wall, the adjacently disposed side Walls of the two inserts being spaced apart a distance to cooperate with a portion of said inclined wall located therebetween to provide an intermediate channel shaped portion adapted to accommodate a plurality of superimposed rows of additional articles of merchandise, and the abutment members located between said last mentioned adjacently disposed side walls providing stops for the lowermost articles of said additional rows of articles, said supporting structure includ- '6 ing side walls connected to and extending upwardly from the inclined side edges of said inclined wall, a rear wall rising from the upper edge of said inclined wall and extending between the upper ends of the side walls of said supporting structure, and a cover provided with a glass panel and having an upper edge hinged to the upper edge of said rear wall and having side edge portions resting on the upper edges of the side walls of said supporting structure, in a closed position of said cover, said cover having a bottom edge disposed in substantially the same vertical plane as the lower edge of said inclined wall, when the cover is in a closed position, whereby certain of said articles of the superimposed rows of articles, which are located in engagement with the shoulders of said abutment members, are disposed beneath and beyond the lower edge of the cover and in an exposed position for removal from the holder and dispenser.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

